Operation Black Buck

Operation Black Buck was a series of seven Royal Air Force ground attack missions carried out from 1 May to 12 June 1982 during the Falklands War. The bombing campaign prevented Argentina from basing its air force from the islands, and instead confined them to using the mainland bases.

Background
On 4 April 1982, Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's War Cabinet sent out a task force of 127 ships (41 Royal Navy vessels, 2 Royal Navy aircraft carriers carrying 42 aircraft, 22 Royal Fleet Auxiliary ships, and 62 merchant ships) to reclaim the Falkland Islands, which Argentina had occupied in Operation Rosario two days earlier. Britain's strategy was to secure complete air and sea dominance around the islands before the deployment of ground troops, creating an exclusion zone of 200 miles around the islands to prevent any Argentine vessels from entering the Falklands. The Argentines attempted to surround the British fleet from the south and northwest of the islands, hoping to defeat them and maintain their occupation.

Operation
On 1 May 1982, British operations in the Falklands began with the "Black Buck 1" attack on the Port Stanley Airport, dealing minimal damage to the aircraft runways of the Falklands, but preventing the Argentines from stationing their air force directly on the islands.